ArticleGut2012
Serum ghrelin is inversely associated with risk of subsequent oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
Article in Gut, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 28 citations in OpenAlex.
- Should we pay more attention to the potential link betweenWorld journal of gastroenterology · 2024Pooled it
- Genome-Wide Association and Two-Sample Mendelian Randomization Analyses of Plasma Ghrelin and Gastrointestinal Cancer Risk.Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology · 2023Pooled it
- Is there an effect of ghrelin/ghrelin analogs on cancer? A systematic review.Endocrine-related cancer · 2016Pooled it
- Helicobacter pylori infection and esophageal cancer risk: an updated meta-analysis.World journal of gastroenterology · 2013Pooled it
- Article
- γH2AX and p53 Immunohistochemistry predict the incidence risk of esophageal squamous precancerous lesions.BMC medicine · 2026Article
- Integrated liquid biopsy model for predicting metastasis and guiding PD-1 therapy in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.Frontiers in oncology · 2025Article
- Beyond the stomach: the association betweenFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2025Review
- Prevalence ofWorld journal of gastroenterology · 2024Observational
- Article
- Therapeutic potential of ghrelin/GOAT/GHSR system in gastrointestinal disorders.Frontiers in nutrition · 2024Review
- Protective and Healing Effects of Ghrelin and Risk of Cancer in the Digestive System.International journal of molecular sciences · 2021Review
- Ghrelin and its role in gastrointestinal tract tumors (Review).Molecular medicine reports · 2021Review
- Serum ghrelin and esophageal and gastric cancer in two cohorts in China.International journal of cancer · 2020Article
- Etiology, cancer stem cells and potential diagnostic biomarkers for esophageal cancer.Cancer letters · 2019Review
- Systematic Review with Meta-analysis: Association of Helicobacter pylori Infection with Esophageal Cancer.Gastroenterology research and practice · 2019Review
- Serum pepsinogen assay is not recommended for the diagnosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Cancer management and research · 2019Article
- Attribution of Ghrelin to Cancer; Attempts to Unravel an Apparent Controversy.Frontiers in oncology · 2019Review
- Energy balance and gastrointestinal cancer: risk, interventions, outcomes and mechanisms.Nature reviews. Gastroenterology & hepatology · 2018Review
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors at 5 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundGastric atrophy, as determined by a low serum pepsinogen I:II ratio, may be associated with an increased risk of oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Ghrelin, a hormone which, is also produced in the gastric fundic glands may be a marker of gastric atrophy, but its association with OSCC is not known.
methodsTo examine the relationship between baseline serum ghrelin concentration and subsequent risk of OSCC, the authors conducted a nested case-control study within the Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention (ATBC) study. 82 cases of OSCC were matched (1:1) by age and date of blood draw to controls from the ATBC study. Serum ghrelin was measured by radioimmunoassay. ORs and 95% CIs were calculated using conditional logistic regression with adjustment for potential confounders.
resultsFor individuals in the lowest quartile of serum ghrelin, compared to those in the highest, the multivariate OR of subsequent OSCC was 6.83 (95% CI 1.46 to 31.84). These associations were dose dependent (p value for trend =0.005 for both), and independent of the effects of low pepsinogen I:II ratio and Helicobacter pylori infection. The significance of these associations remained even for individuals developing OSCC up to 10 years after baseline ghrelin measurement, although they become attenuated after 10 years.
conclusionLower baseline concentrations of serum ghrelin were associated with an increase in risk of OSCC. Further studies are needed to confirm this finding in other populations and to explore the role of ghrelin in the aetiology of OSCC.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.